IN PRAISE OF BUTTER

 

There is something to be said for butter:  TASTE.  It is just plain good.  Wonderful, in fact.

When I awakened this morning there were memories of oleo floating through my brain.  Remember oleo?  That was the forerunner of margarine.  It came in a one pound block  -- white.  Lardy.  Tasteless.  Included with this was a little packet of "color."  The oleo was put into a bowl and allowed to soften to room temperature, then mushed around with a spoon until it was malleable.  Then the "color" packet was v e r y carefully opened.  If it spilled anyplace but on top of the oleo it was a horrendous mess and almost impossible to clean up.

One worked the color into the oleo.  Slowly.  It had to be smushed and shoved, pressed and pushed, worked and reworked for a very long time.  The color had to be completely incorporated leaving no streaks.  Just one smooth, continuous color.  After all, it was supposed to look like butter.  I don't remember how it was packaged and put away for use.  In fact, I don't remember even using it on toast or anything else.

After the block of oleo with the color packet came a revolutionary new coloring method.  A soft pliable envelope type -- oblong -- could have been plastic (?).  The container, whatever it was, was left out to get to room temperature, then squished and squeezed until pliable and THEN on one side was a little capsule, that when pinched, released color into the oleo.  More squishing and squeezing to get the color uniform.  Again, I don't remember how this package was opened or stored or how its contents were used.  I think at this time we referred to this as 'margarine' or maybe even oleo margarine.

The margarines that saturate the market are too numerous to now consider.  Some are touted to be more healthy than others.  Many claim to taste just like butter.  Others have additions of "good" oils and vitamins.  They don't taste like butter. 

Butter is best!